IND vs NZ: “He's Made A Decision To Explore A Few Other Options": Kane Williamson Said On Martin Guptill's Absence

Martin Guptill has subsequently requested and been granted a release from his New Zealand Cricket contract, and while the 36-year-old is still eligible for selection, his chances of adding to his 198 ODI caps appear unlikely.

Kane Williamson praised Guptill when asked if he would have preferred him to be included in the side to face India, which was chosen by coach Gary Stead and selector Gavin Larsen and released last Tuesday.

In his 12 ODIs in 2022, Guptill averaged 34.91, despite the fact that the majority of those games were against cricketing underdogs Bangladesh, Ireland, Netherlands, and Scotland. He had scored 24, 3, 57, 6, and 2 in his previous five innings in Australia and the West Indies, respectively.

Since making his ODI debut against Ireland in July, Allen has only participated in eight matches, averaging 38.5. He scored 96 and 3 in his two games against the West Indies, and 35 in his one match against Australia.

When the 23-year-old struck 42 off 16 balls in the Black Caps’ T20 World Cup victory over Australia at the Sydney Cricket Ground last month, he made his international debut.

But in the game’s shortest format since then, he has scored a total of 56 runs off 41 balls over six innings. If these troubles persist in the ODI series against India, it will be questioned whether Guptill was let go too soon.

“Martin Guptill absolutely will be missed”: Kane Williamson

Kane Williamson praised Guptill when asked if he would have preferred him to be included in the side to face India.

“He’s made a decision to explore a few other options, but as a player and an experienced part of the group, he’s added so much value over the years and been one of our best white-ball players ever,” Kane Williamson said.

“Even without a playing opportunity in the T20 World Cup, he was great at offering assistance to all the guys in the group.” He’s been wonderful in so many aspects of the environment,” Kane Williamson added.

“He will be greatly missed, but he is not retiring, so there is a lot to work through over the next few months to get a true sense of how the picture appears,” Kane Williamson remarked.

Guptill has not consistently performed as well in India as he has everywhere in the world, which is perhaps a contributing factor in Stead and Larsen moving on from him. In contrast, Allen is undoubtedly a player with a lot of potential, even though he is now going through a difficult time.

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